Court Administrators Get $10,000 Pay Hikes

A divided Board of Supervisors voted Wednesday to grant pay raises to the county’s five municipal court administrators.

The raises, which will boost the administrators’ base salaries from $82,000 to $92,000 a year, were being discussed before the county’s bankruptcy in 1994 but were postponed because of that crisis.

Court officials said the new salary brings the administrators in line with other county managers with similar responsibilities.

Supervisor Don Saltarelli praised the administrators for cutting costs and operating their courts under difficult circumstances during the bankruptcy.

“This sends a message that those who save the taxpayers money through more efficient operations . . . can expect some reward,” he said.

Board Chairman Roger R. Stanton and Thomas W. Wilson also voted for the raises. But Supervisors William G. Steiner and Jim Silva opposed them.

“While I recognize the outstanding job they have done, they are only five of many outstanding performers in the county who deserve the same consideration,” Steiner said. “I think we need to deal with this later when we look at all county salaries.”

County Chief Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier also expressed concern about the raises, noting that most county unions are not scheduled to receive pay increases for at least a year.

In other action, the board held a closed-door evaluation of Mittermeier, who has generally won praise from supervisors. The evaluation did not involve any increase of the CEO’s $140,000 salary.